Charles R. Hacker, born August 29, 1866, on his uncle’s farm in Nemaha County, Nebraska, was a lifelong resident of the county. His grandfather, David Hacker, a Virginian born in 1797, served in the “Graybeard Regiment” during the Civil War and died in 1863. Charles’ father, James Malcolm Hacker, born in 1825 in Dayton, Ohio, was a pioneer of Nemaha County and served as a civil engineer and county clerk. Charles followed in his father’s footsteps, becoming county clerk in 1901 and re-elected in 1903. On February 8, 1903, Charles married his third cousin, Elsie Hacker. The couple, along with Charles’ mother, lived in Auburn, where they were active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Charles was also involved in the Modern Woodmen and the Knights of Pythias.
Charles R. Hacker, county clerk of Nemaha County, Nebraska, was born on his uncle’s farm, now the Nemaha County poor farm, on August 29, 1866, and all his life has been identified with this county.
Mr. Hacker’s ancestors were residents of the Old Dominion. His grandfather, David Hacker, was a native of Virginia, born July 24, 1797. Moving to what was then called the West, he lived in Ohio and Indiana, and when the Civil War was inaugurated, although then well advanced in years, his patriotism was shown by his volunteer service. As a member of Company D, Thirty-seventh Iowa Volunteer Infantry, known as the “Graybeard Regiment,” he performed faithful duty in the ranks, and died at St. Louis, Missouri, on June 20, 1863. He and his wife, whose maiden name was Catherine Gile, were the parents of seven children, six of whom reached adult age, namely: James Malcolm; Agnes Jane, wife of Robert Stogdel, was born in 1827 and died April 22, 1892; Elizabeth Ann, born November 30, 1828, died September 12, 1850; Sarah, who died in infancy; William S., born April 13, 1834, died January 20, 1899; John Wesley, born February 26, 1838, died September 23, 1897; and Francis Asbury, the only survivor of the family, was born July 11, 1843, and is engaged in farming in Nemaha County, Nebraska.
James Malcolm Hacker, the father of Charles R., was born at Dayton, Ohio, on September 12, 1825, and died in Auburn, Nebraska, on January 25, 1902. He was one of the pioneers of Nemaha County, having come to this county in 1858, from Iowa, to which place he had emigrated from Ohio. Not long after coming to Nebraska, he moved to Kansas, but returned shortly afterward to this state and county, of which he was an honored citizen for forty years. By occupation, he was a civil engineer and for many years filled the office of county surveyor, and he also filled other public offices of trust and responsibility in Nemaha County. For three terms he was county clerk, and he was deputy in that office under County Clerks Culbertson and Hubbard. Fraternally, he was identified with the Masons and the Knights of Pythias and Odd Fellows, having been a member of the first organization for more than thirty years and having received all the degrees up to and including the Scottish Rite, and was an I. O. O. F. for over fifty years. Politically, he affiliated with the Whigs in early life and when the Republican Party came into existence he harmonized with it and gave it his enthusiastic support. As a youth, he took an active interest in the William Henry Harrison campaign. His last vote he cast in the fall of 1901, when he helped to elect his own son, Charles R., to the office of county clerk. Religiously, he was a life-long Methodist. On March 8, 1851, he married Miss Mary Jane Fairbrother, who was born in Indiana, January 28, 1831, daughter of Arnold L. and Mary (Jane) Fairbrother, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Indiana. The children of James M. and Mary J. Hacker are: James Olney; George Washington; William Thomas; Charles R.; Francis John, who died at the age of eleven years; Marietta, wife of Wesley H. Clark, died March 2, 1898, leaving five children, of whom four are living, two daughters with their grandmother and two sons with their father; and Harvey David. All are married except William Thomas, who is a gold miner in the Black Hills.
Charles R. Hacker, with the other children in the family, was reared on the farm, which his mother managed with their assistance while the father was in Brownville and Auburn, attending to his official business. The farm on which they lived was sold in 1888 and the family moved to Auburn, where Charles R. has since lived, and where he has, in a measure, succeeded to the position occupied by his honored father. As already stated in this article, he was elected to the county clerk’s office in the fall of 1901 and re-elected in the fall of 1903, and is now filling that position.
Mr. Hacker was married, February 8, 1903, to Miss Elsie Hacker, a third cousin, and they reside with his mother in Auburn. Like his parents, Mr. Hacker is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as also is Mrs. Hacker. Politically, he is a Republican, and he has fraternal relations with the Modern Woodmen and the Knights of Pythias.
Source: Lewis Publishing Company, A Biographical and Genealogical History of Southeastern Nebraska, 2 volumes, Lewis Publishing Company, 1904.